


First times and everything else

by Gaia_bing



Series: First times and everything else [1]
Category: Nagron - Fandom, Spartacus Series (TV), Spartacus: Vengeance, Spartacus: War of the Damned
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, First Date, First Kiss, First Time, M/M, Prequel, culinary school
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-16
Updated: 2013-06-26
Packaged: 2017-12-15 03:20:07
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 17,299
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/844693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gaia_bing/pseuds/Gaia_bing
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The first of everything for Agron and Nasir. Part of my "Sinuessa en Pistrina" Universe. A slash story.</p><p>Chapter 3 is rated E for some explicit sexy content. You've been warned. :)</p><p>Chapter 5 is rated M for some sexy times also, but less explicit. :)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. First meeting

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys! I'm making my first chaptered sequel! :D First of all, thank you all so much for the reviews and the kudos for my previous fic "Sinuessa en Pistrina". It meant a whole lot to me that you guys liked it. So I wanted to do a little something where I explore the first times in Nasir and Agron's relationship in this universe: first meeting, first kiss, first time...it probably won't have a lot of chapters since I'm not used to write huge long chaptered fics, but I'll probably make 3 or 4 to try to cover the basics, or more if I have the time (or the inspiration) to think about it. Thanks a lot and please leave me a review or a kudos and tell me what you thought! :)

"Okay, so we got the 10 AM class together today, then the 2 PM one tomorrow, then the 8 AM one on Friday." Nasir said while holding up his class schedule and comparing it to the one that Chadara, his childhood friend, was holding while they were walking to the place that would become their secondary home for the next 2 years, the Roma Culinary School.  
  
"Yep, that's pretty much it. Ooh, this is going to be so much fun! I can't wait to see who's my roommate. I hope it's a guy and a cute one to boot." Chadara replied with a smirk.  
  
"Oh please, you say that everywhere we go. At a bar: "I hope there's a cute guy here tonight!", In high-school: "Oh Nasir, I hope I sit next to a cute guy in class." and it just goes on and on." Nasir said, doing his best girly impression, batting his eyes dramatically and flipping his hair, making his friend's laugh.  
  
"Yeah well, looks like someone's jealous because he hasn't had a date in a long time." Chadara said as they opened the main door of the school.  
  
"Well, that someone just doesn't have the time to date right now. If we wanna finish culinary school in time, we just can't dwindle into romance and all that crap. We gotta focus, focus and focus." Nasir replied to her with a serious look on his face, but with a little bit of remorse in his heart. She was right, he hadn't had a date in a long time. The last one he had, with an acquaintance of said childhood friend named Ethan, had been a complete disaster. He was a complete geek who had just talked on and on what between Star Trek or Star Wars was the better franchise for hours on end. It wasn't that Nasir didn't like those series, it's just that there was other things in this world to talk about and it became boring after a while. And by the end of the night, he had been more focused at looking at his watch anticipating the end of the date rather than enjoying the other man's company.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. You keep telling yourself that. I'm telling you, you never know when love is going to strike you. It could be just around the corner." Chadara said as they were walking through the main hall.  
  
"Oh please, like I would just turn around and then, BAM!-" as he was saying that, Nasir was walking backwards while talking to Chadara and wasn't looking where he was going, so it was with no surprise that the next thing saw were the neon lights from the ceiling as he had slammed right into someone and they both had ended sprawled up on the floor. "Ow!" Nasir said, sitting up and rubbing his hurting head from the fall, turning around, ready to chastise the person that had run into him. As he turned around, ready to let that person get a piece of his mind, his breath caught in his throat and any angry thoughts flew right out of his mind.  
  
Because the person that had crashed into him and landed alongside him in a heap on the floor was the most gorgeous creature he had ever laid his eyes on. With green eyes that looked like the most beautiful jewels he had ever seen, short spiky hair that made Nasir want to ran his hands through it for hours and hours on end and a muscled-body that made Nasir think the other man must have been a star athlete in his high-school years. Add to the fact that the other man looked as mesmerized as Nasir seemed to be by him, because he couldn't stop looking at him, with a look of wonderment upon his face.  
  
"Hey." The gorgeous man said with a soft smile, looking at him like there was no one the planet other than Nasir. And for a moment, for Nasir, the exact same fact was true.  
  
"Hi." Nasir whispered back at the sexy man and smiling back at him, still under his spell.  
  
And then Chadara just had to come around the corner and break the moment. "Oh my god, Nasir! Are you okay?" she asked, pulling at her friend's arm to try and help him stand up.  
  
Finally up his feet and the spell that had been cast between the two men being over, Nasir looked at Chadara and said: "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. I just ran into..." he turned his head about to ask for the other man's name, when he saw that the said man had disappeared in his moment of distraction. Nasir looked around, the cute stranger nowhere to be found. Had this all been a weird dream? Did he had somehow imagined this gorgeous guy and he had somehow tripped into his own feet? Shaking his head and a little disappointed, Nasir finished by saying: "no one, I ran into no one."  
  
"Well, it ain't like you to be so clumsy, Nasir. You're always so calculating in your steps and so agile, it's actually shocking to see that you can actually fall on your ass every once in a while." Chadara said with a smirk.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, mock me all you want, Ms. Smartass, but I can fall on my ass, I'm human too just so you know." Nasir replied with sarcasm.  
  
"You, human? Please, like you have any faults, Mr. Everything-Must-Be-Perfect-Or-I'll-Be-Pissed." Chadara mocked him back as they walked to class arm-in-arm, Nasir's weird encounter long forgotten, with Nasir placing it as a strange first-day-of-school-stress-induced hallucination in the back of his mind.  
  
It wasn't until after his afternoon class had ended that Nasir's mind went back onto the strange incident from that morning. He couldn't just have made a person out of thin air, could he? He might have a wild imagination sometimes, but it couldn't have been wild enough to make the man of his dream materialize before him and made him bump into him, right? Could the other person just have run away when he wasn't looking? And besides, even if he was real, just as Nasir's luck would have it, he must have been straight and probably had a steady girlfriend. _And I didn't even get to learn his name._ Nasir sadly thought as he entered the dorm he was going to stay at for the next couple of years. Just like Chadara, Nasir had no idea who his dorm roommate was going to be. He hoped it was going to be a guy and a cute one too, just like Chadara had hoped for herself. But, as he thought with a sigh, nobody would ever be as gorgeous as the god with green eyes his mind had conjured up that morning. And with his luck, his roommate would probably be a girl who wouldn't want to talk to him at all and would always be absent because she would be too busy shopping or hanging out with her girlfriends. _Oh well_ , he thought as he entered his room, _at least he'd have some quiet time to study and do some cooking of his own for his classes_. As he opened the door, he heard the sound of a flush coming from the bathroom. Great, he thought as he sat on his bed where he had laid his luggage that very morning, _at least I'll be able to meet her_. As he opened his suitcase to begin pulling out some of his clothes to put in their chosen drawers, he heard the door of the bathroom open.  
  
With his mind distracted with the task at hand and his nose in his luggage, he didn't see who exited the bathroom and only heard footsteps coming out of said room and come right in front of him.  
  
"Hey!" Nasir called out cheerily, pulling out a T-Shirt from his suitcase and folding neatly on the bed. "I'm Nasir. I'm gonna be your new roommate. I'm very pleased to meet-." Nasir couldn't finish his sentence, because as he turned around to take a look at his new roommate and properly introduce himself, he came face to face with what he had thought had been a trick his mind had set up for him to tell him that love still existed out there and for a second had conjured up what his dream guy would look like. But in the end, his hallucination wasn't one and it was now standing in his room and replied with an extended hand and a smile upon its face:  
  
"It's nice to meet you too. I'm Agron by the way."  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up will be their first kiss and it might not go down as you might imagine...;)


	2. First kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their first kiss...

"Hey man, thanks again for the book. Sorry it was on such short notice, but I lost my copy yesterday and I didn't know anybody else that had it except for you." Agron said to one of his best friend, Crixus, as he stepped out of the other man's dorm room.  
  
"No problem dude. It's fortunate for you I had the exam this morning and you have it tomorrow. But really, Agron, how many times have you lost a book since the beginning of the semester?" Crixus enquired, leaning against the frame of his front door.  
  
"Please, don't remind me, man. I already got Nasir on my case about it, I don't really need you too." Agron replied with a groan.  
  
"Always so perfectionist, the little man, and you so air-headed. You guys would make an awesome couple, if I say so myself." Crixus said with a slight grin.  
  
"Yeah, yeah we would." Agron added, with a dreamy sigh and his head elsewhere.  
  
"Still as attracted to him as you were a month ago, I presume?" Crixus asked, raising his eyebrows.  
  
Agron sighed sadly this time. "Yeah, I still am. But the guy's got a girlfriend so it's not like I can do anything about it."  
  
Crixus crossed his arms and said: "Are you sure that that Chadara chick is his girlfriend? Have you actually approached this particular subject with him?"  
  
Agron leaned back against the nearby wall and replied: "Oh please, like it's not obvious. They're always together and they're always talking and laughing like they're the only ones that get their jokes. And she's always kissing him on the mouth when I see them go their separate ways. Of course they're a couple."  
  
Crixus leaned forward and looked intently at Agron: "But didn't you say he looked awestruck by you when you guys first met, or should I say "stumble" into each other?"  
  
Agron dropped his head. Yes, Nasir had looked at him as if he was the only person that existed in the entire universe when they had first met a month earlier. But with time, Agron had assumed that it had been his mind playing tricks on him because of his own sudden attraction to the other man when, in his clumsiness and his earphones burying the other sounds around him, he hadn't seen nor heard the person turning the corner on the opposite way he was going and they had crashed together in a tangle of limbs on the cold hard tiled floor. When Agron had gained his bearings and had sat up to see who he had crashed into, he had felt as if an angel had fallen from heaven and landed right in front of him because the beauty that stood right before him couldn't be from this world. With his large earthy-colored eyes and his lushed-looking hair, he truly was a sight to behold. And when he had looked into his eyes and addressed his first words to the other man, it seemed like the world had stopped around them and a spark had automatically struck between them. And Nasir had in fact looked for a second as much under the same spell as he was, but that was broken the second a petite-looking woman approached the pair and had grabbed Nasir by the arm to help him get up. When he saw how concerned the girl had looked for Nasir's well being and how the other man had looked at the girl with a wide smile and thankful eyes, he had assumed the pair was in fact a couple and had bolted out of there as fast as he could before Nasir could look back at him. He had made a run out of the school's main door as fast as he could and only stopped to take a breath when he had found a nearby wall he could lean back on and no one could bother him. He had heaved breath after breath and scoffed himself. _Of course someone as gorgeous as that guy was was straight_ , he had thought with tears coming in his eyes. _And even if he was gay, he certainly wouldn't go for a guy like me_ , he thought bitterly about himself, _with my gaucheness and being so head-in-the-cloud all the time. Well,_ he decided, _if I can't be his boyfriend, at least I might be able to be his friend_. He had become overjoyed when, thanks to the dean's help, he had found out that Nasir would become his new roommate for the next semester.   
  
And when they had talked to one another once again in their dorm room, Agron had found out that despite their clashing personalities, they still had a lot in common and they became fast friends. Unfortunately, with each and passing day, even though he had promised himself to keep his attraction to Nasir at bay, he couldn't help himself to sometimes think about the other man in a more affectionate way than just friends. He would sometimes find himself daydreaming about what it would be like to be Nasir's boyfriend, what would their dates be like, what would they talk about, if Nasir was a good kisser and then his thoughts would almost always drift into dirty things and he would often finish his fantasies with a cold shower, imagining what he would do to Nasir or what Nasir would do to him with a hand on his manhood and moaning as quietly as he could so the other man wouldn't notice.  
  
Agron quickly got out of his thoughts and looked once again at Crixus. "Look man, as much as I appreciate your concern, this really ain't much of your business. And besides, like I told you, nothing's going to happen between Nasir and me, even as attracted to him as I am right now. We're just not in the same place right now and we're not even in the same gender preference! So yeah, not going to happen, no matter how much I want it to." Agron sighed, looking defeated and placing his backpack over his shoulders. "Just forget about it and I'll see you tomorrow, okay? I gotta go and I gotta study if I wanna be ready for the exam." he added with a smile.  
  
"Okay, whatever dude. See ya tomorrow." Crixus waved at him with a smile as Agron went along his way.  
  
As Agron entered his room, he put his backpack down near the front door and called out: "Nasir, I'm back! Sorry it took so long, I was just chatting with Crixus and I just thought-" Agron didn't finish his sentence because he noticed that nobody would be listening to him. Because as he walked across the room, he noticed that Nasir had fallen asleep on the couch and with the book that was laying face down in his lap, it looked like he had once again fallen asleep studying. With a smile, Agron quietly approached the couch and kneeled in front of the sleeping man. He took the school book and put it on the coffee table nearby and pulled a blanket over his roommate. Not being able to stop himself, Agron stared at Nasir and softly ran a hand through the long dark hair. He then quietly leaned over and pecked Nasir softly on the forehead for a kiss goodnight when, pulling back a little and looking at the other man's peaceful sleeping face, Agron's attraction got the best of him and he leaned forward once again but this time, his lips found Nasir's and he dropped a soft kiss upon them. It lasted only a second and Agron was about to pull back when Nasir mumbled something and started to kiss back.

For a few seconds, Agron got into it, but bringing himself back to reality and thinking that the other man was probably dreaming about kissing Chadara, Agron didn't move a single muscle nor made a single peep until Nasir dropped his head back, once again sleeping soundly. Getting up as quietly as he could, Agron tip-toed his way into his bedroom where he knew he would probably have another date with his right hand once again just by the reaction his heart and his body had during the kiss and when he closed the door to his room, he finally started to breathe again, studying be damned.   
  
But on the other hand, if he had stayed just five seconds longer, he might have noticed a pair of dark eyes opening and someone laying on the couch trying also to catch his breath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up, well let's just say things are going to get a little bit steamier...;)


	3. First time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Well, their first time. Some smutty content ahead, you've been warned. :)

Nasir walked as fast as he could through the school's hallways, trying to get to his and Agron's meeting point as fast as he could. They had agreed to get together right after Nasir's afternoon class for some studying because once again Agron had waited until the last minute to prepare for a test and the man had some difficulties into the subject he was studying for. While Nasir always did his papers on time and always studied well in advance to be as much prepared as he could and to get the best grades possible, Agron on the other hand was the total opposite, always waking up at the last minute to study and would often spend all-nighters typing away at his computer for assignments that were due the very next morning. He had thought that tonight would be the night where he would finally face his fears and have the guts to finally ask Agron out on a proper date after some hard studying.   
  
It had been a couple of weeks since the incident on the couch and Nasir was still reeling from it to this day. And yes, before you ask, he had been awake the whole time Agron was there. He had indeed fallen asleep while studying but Agron's arrival in the dorm room had woken him up. He would have said something but when in the corner of his eyes he had seen how Agron was looking at his supposed sleeping form in absolute wonderment, he decided to play dead and see what would happen. The sweet caress in his hair and the kiss on his lips that followed were simply...magical and it had sent his mind reeling the moment Agron had gone to bed. Had he been really wrong all this time? Did Agron have feelings for him and didn't tell him about it? All this time, he had thought the other man was straight and would never fall for a guy like him, but after that night, his hopes of maybe being more than friends with Agron had once again reemerged and even though it had taken him weeks to gather up the courage and lots of advice from Chadara, today he had enough courage in his heart and spring into his steps to have the guts to finally ask the man of his dreams out on a formal date. That thought brought a smile to Nasir's face and he almost sprang into a run, trying to get to Agron as fast as possible.  
  
He finally arrived at their meeting point, which was in the parking lot of the school and he smiled when he saw that Agron was already there waiting for him. He was about to shout to signal his presence when suddenly he noticed something that made the smile faltered from his face and the hopes that he had been building up for weeks crumpling down into dust right at his feet.  
  
Because, as he was approaching his destination, he had noticed that Agron wasn't alone. And the person accompanying Agron seemed to be in a close relationship with him, with the way Agron had his arm wrapped around his shoulders and laughing louder and looking happier than he had ever seen him. His company was in fact another man and in Nasir's mind, just the type of guy Agron would go for: wide smiling eyes, large athletic build just like Agron but with dreadlocks adorning his hair unlike the spiky cut Agron was sporting.   
  
Nasir could almost feel his heart breaking into his chest. He had been too late. If only he had gotten the courage earlier and hadn't waited so long after the incident on the couch to confess his feelings to Agron when he had been available, then maybe it would be him having Agron's arm wrapped around him having a grand old time and not this other man. But maybe, it was just for the best. Maybe Agron was much better off with a guy that looked to be more like him than someone like Nasir who was so different in looks and personalities than the other man. Maybe they just weren't meant to be together this way after all and would just always be friends. And Nasir much preferred having Agron as a friend than not having the other man in his life at all.   
  
Pushing his feelings deep down for what seemed the millionth time since he had met Agron, Nasir put on his best fake smiling face and waved at the smiling duo.   
  
"Agron!" Nasir shouted from a distance, making the other man look up and wave back at him. Agron seemed to say something funny to his boyfriend because the other man laughed out loud, gave Agron a kiss on the cheek and one final hug and then left the other man to go talk to some other people a couple of feet away from them.   
  
Agron approached Nasir with a smile. "Hey man, sorry I didn't see you before. I got a little bit busy." he said, looking over his shoulder fondly at the man he had been with just a couple of seconds beforehand.  
  
"Yeah, I noticed." Nasir muttered bitterly under his breath.  
  
"What?" Agron snapped his head around, not quite hearing what Nasir had just said.  
  
Nasir quickly put his smiling face back on and pretended he hadn't said anything. "Nothing, nothing, just forget it, okay? So, ready to some brain-cramming?" Nasir said as excitedly as he could, rubbing his hands together.  
  
"Yeah, let's get out of here and get back to our dorm, we got some studying to do!" Agron replied, looking as excited as Nasir tried to be and the pair began to walk out of the parking lot onto their destination.  
  
 ********

  
  
"So, for the final time: what does self-rising flour consists of?"  
  
"Hmm...125 g of regular flour, 1 teaspoon of baking powder and a pinch of salt."  
  
Both Agron and Nasir were now hard at work in their dorm room. Agron was sitting on a stool in their tiny kitchen trying to memorize everything he had crammed into his brain all through the night while Nasir was acting as his coach, pacing back and forth with the other man's book into his hands, asking him question after question to see if he had learned everything well.   
  
"Good! Now for the tricky one: I want 36 ounces of chocolate rolled fondant. Give me the ingredients that I need to get to that amount. Go!" Nasir stopped and stood in front of the other man, awaiting his answer.  
  
"Huh, uh...3 tablespoons of unflavored gelatin, about a quarter of a cup of water, a half a cup of Glucose, 2 tablespoons of solid vegetable shortening, 1 tablespoon of Glycerin, chocolate icing, flavoring and...and...damnit!" Agron said putting his head in his hands, frustrated with himself for not remembering the last ingredient.  
  
"Come on Agron! You can do it! It's the biggest amount of ingredients you need. Just think..." Nasir persisted, wanting Agron to remember the answer.  
  
"Uh...uh...Oh, oh!! 8 cups of confectioners' sugar!!!" Agron suddenly shouted, raising from the stool, arms in the air.  
  
"Yes!! You got it!!" Nasir shouted, throwing the study book into the air in celebration. "You're gonna to nail this test Agron, I just know it." Nasir added with a huge smile on his face.  
  
"Well if I do, it's gonna best thanks to you. I don't know what I'd do without you man." Agron said smiling back at him.  
  
"Well, that's what friends are for right? Just doing my job, as always." Nasir answered wistfully, wishing he was indeed more than just a friend to Agron, but knowing it was impossible.  
  
"What are you talking about? You're no just doing your job, you're one of my best friends Nasir and I'll never be able to thank you enough for everything you've done for me. Come here." Agron replied opening his arms wide open, inviting him for a hug.  
  
"Alright, alright, don't need to be so dramatic about it. I appreciate the thanks." Nasir said as he approached the other man and threw his own arms around him and the two hugged tightly, tapping each other on the back a couple of times, like a couple of buddies would do. But instead of pulling back and go about their business like they were supposed to, Nasir and Agron were lost into their own individual thoughts and the hug started to linger for a bit.  
  
Agron plunged his nose into Nasir's hair and slowly sniffed it. It smelled like the beach after a good session of rain and the earth and sand and the sea just mixed so well together, it was just so intoxicating. He wrapped his arms tighter around the other man and for a second there, he felt his secret feelings come out.  
  
Nasir was lost in Agron's arms too. He laid his head upon Agron's shoulder and smiled because for a second, he could pretend that the only people that existed in this world were the two of them and nothing else mattered: not school, no other people, just them. And despite himself, the feelings he had tried to bury again and again once again came out onto the surface and when he felt a soft kiss on the top of his head, he couldn't help himself and pressed a kiss on the clothed shoulder he had laid his head upon.  
  
It was then that the atmosphere around them began to change and the two of them felt their heartbeats and the temperature in the room quickly starting to rise. Slowly, they each pulled back a little and still with their arms wrapped around the other man, they stared at one another. The tension between them could be cut with a knife and if somebody didn't do anything soon, they both felt they could suffocate from the heat that had developed around them and into them. Without really realizing it, this was the closest they had been to one another since the moment they had first stumbled into one another all those months ago and by being so close to one another once again and staring deeply into each other's eyes just like that first day of school, the spell that had fallen between the two of them at that moment had once again come back. And, because now they knew each other so well and their attraction to one another wasn't just on a physical level but also on a personal level, their feelings for one another were now tenfold than they were during their first meeting. And just like a dam, once they stopped trying to placate their feelings by steeling their hearts, in that hug they let themselves be vulnerable to those emotions and when they had stared into each other's eyes, a breach in their hearts had let all of their feelings come pouring out and there was no going back now.  
  
And just like two opposite poles that needed to be together, Agron and Nasir each slowly leaned in at the same time and two pairs of soft lips found one another in a soft kiss. Agron was the first to take action and wrapped his arms even tighter if that was even possible against the other man, with Nasir doing the same and slowly moving them across the kitchen. They each stumbled for a bit, still lost in the kiss and trying to maneuver their way to a more comfortable position when they somehow found themselves against the front door of their fridge, with Nasir leaning against the piece of furniture trying to get Agron as close to him as possible. What had started as a sweet kiss on the lips quickly turned into a making out session when Nasir felt Agron's tongue licking at his lips, asking permission to enter, which of course Nasir accepted. Their hands were roaming everywhere they could, over and underneath clothes, trying to feel as much as they could in that moment that they allowed themselves to feel.   
  
Agron's hot lips left Nasir's and found themselves going up and down his neck, leaving goose bumps along the way and Nasir grabbing unto Agron's strong shoulders and gasping for air. Nasir soft moans only encouraged Agron in his actions and he started to slowly grind his hips against the other man's.   
  
Running his hand through Agron's slick hair, Nasir opened his eyes for a moment and unfortunately, in that moment he let himself think and soon reality crashed upon him. What the hell was he doing? Agron was already taken. He had seen him with his boyfriend that very afternoon! How could he kiss a man who was in love with someone else?  
  
"Agron? Agron? Please, stop." he softly called out, with Agron lips still attached to his neck, peppering it with biting kisses, trying as best as he could to disengage himself from the other man's strong embrace. The moment Nasir had spoken, he had felt Agron froze in his track, as though he too realized what they were doing and rapidly stepped back, with a look of shock mixed with shame upon his face.   
  
Agron put his hands on his lips in shock, not believing he had just done this. How could he make out with someone who was straight? But not just straight, but with a girlfriend to boot?   
  
With apologetic eyes and shame written all over their faces, Agron and Nasir both began to speak at the same time.  
  
"Oh god, Nasir, I'm so sorry..."  
  
"Agron! I can't believe that I..."  
  
Both froze and laughed a bit at the same time, realizing what they had just done. Recovering, Nasir began to stammer rather quickly, pacing back and forth: "Agron, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have done that. What was I thinking?"  
  
Agron threw his hands up and quickly responded. "No, I'm the one who should be sorry. I can't believe I just kissed my best friend and who's straight on top of it!"  
  
Nasir stopped pacing and turned around. "What?" he asked, confused by what Agron had just said.  
  
"Yeah! I know you're straight and you got a girlfriend and I'm so sorry I took advantage of you like that! It just was a moment of weakness and your hair smelled so good and being in your arms felt so right and I'm so sorry and I hope we can still be friends and I..." Agron went on and on yammering, not daring to look Nasir in the eye, too ashamed at what he had just done.  
  
Nasir slowly stepped closer to the other msn and put a hand onto Agron's arm to try to shut him up. "Whoah, whoah, whoah! Let's backtrack for a minute there, you think I'm straight? And I've got a girlfriend? Who?" Nasir asked, now even more confused.  
  
Agron looked at Nasir as if he was crazy. "Well, you know, that Chadara chick you hang out with all the time, who else could it be?" he said, looking bewildered also.  
  
Nasir looked at Agron for a second and then, unexpectedly, burst out laughing. Agron couldn't believe Nasir's reaction and asked, almost offended: "What's so funny?"  
  
Nasir was now laughing so hard he was bent in two, his hands on his knees and wiping his eyes. He coughed back his laughter and stood straight back up. "Please, Chadara, my girlfriend?! I wouldn't go out with her even if she was my type and she's certainly not my type at all! Maybe if she was a man though, but not like she is right now..." Nasir said with a smile but then his face backed down into a frown. " Actually, I'm the one who should be apologizing right now, taking advantage of someone who's already got a boyfriend..." he added in shame, looking down at the floor.   
  
  
Agron stood there with a look of complete shock on his face, realizing the meaning of Nasir's words. Chadara wasn't Nasir's girlfriend? Nasir liked men? Nasir thought he had a boyfriend?!  
  
"A boyfriend? Who?" Agron asked, now completely confused by everything that was going on.  
  
"Well, that guy you were with this afternoon when we met up before coming here. I saw you with your arm around him, laughing your asses off and being all happy and shit. Who else could it be?" now it was Nasir's turn to be confused by Agron's questions.  
  
And just like Nasir had done before, it was Agron's turn to explode in laughter and bend over, slapping his knees in amusement. And it was Nasir's turn to not find the situation funny at all. "I'm serious!" he said, putting his hands on his hips, looking up at Agron who was in turn wiping at his eyes. "It's not like me at all to get involved with a man that's already taken and I hope you can forgive me and forget that any of this ever happened." he added with a serious but sad look upon his face. As painful as it would be for Nasir, if they could just pretend nothing had ever happened between the two of them tonight, then maybe at least a fraction of their friendship could be salvaged after all. Nasir looked down at the floor once again and closed his eyes, trying to stop the tears that sprang upon them threatened to fall. He sniffed a bit and was about to turn around and go to his room to try and get away from the mess he had created when he felt a strong hand on his arm and another one lifting his face upwards. With regret on his face, Nasir opened his eyes, ready to face whatever Agron had to say when he was shocked to find that instead of being mad, Agron still had a smile on his face from before. Wiping a lonely tear from Nasir's face with his finger, Agron's smile softened and he began to speak as he stepped back a bit:  
  
"Nasir, that guy I you saw me with this afternoon, he wasn't my boyfriend, he was my brother!" Agron said with a laugh.   
  
Nasir looked at him in shock and replied: "Your brother?! But you were all touchy feely with him and he even gave you a kiss on the cheek when he left..."  
  
"That's because we hadn't seen each other in a long time. And we're always affectionate like that, that's just who we are. I don't have a boyfriend right now, I haven't had one for a really long time." Agron said, looking at Nasir with a bit of an ashamed look on his face.  
  
Nasir bit his lip, feeling very silly about what he had thought but then, he realized: "Hey, I'm not the only one who assumed things here, just so you know. If you just had asked me about my relationship with Chadara, I would have been more happy to tell you about it and then maybe none of this mess would have had happened."   
  
A smile lifted at the corner of Agron's mouth: "So, you're not straight?" he asked, a bit of hope coming back inside of his heart.  
  
Nasir smiled a bit, stepping closer to the other man. "Nope, I'm 100% gay and completely available. But my interested has already been piqued by someone. How about you?" he asked Agron coyly.  
  
Agron smiled back at him, coming even closer and taking his hand. "I would say the same, if my heart wasn't already taken by someone also."   
  
Nasir then put the hand that wasn't in Agron's upon the other man's face and softly caressed his stubbly cheek. "Hmm, and who does have your heart?" he asked softly, slowly leaning in.  
  
"Well, who does have your interest piqued?" Agron asked in return, also slowly leaning forward.  
  
Both didn't say a word, both knowing the other's answer. And just like before their lips met into a sweet kiss, but this one turned desperate and passionate even faster than the one before that. The roaming that had started before reality had rudely interrupted them started once again and it was Nasir this time that took things further than before, by lifting his hands to the zipper of Agron's hoodie and bringing it down, slowly taking the garment off Agron's strong shoulders, his intent apparent on his face. Agron looked into his new lover's face with the same fire in his eyes and gave Nasir a searing kiss on his lips before lifting his arms up to get rid of the other man's t-shirt. Agron slowly descended his lips down Nasir's lean torso, leaving the other man a moaning and writhing mess and as he took Agron by the arms and pulled his lips back up to his, his hands caressed down Agron's own muscular chest to take the bottom of his own shirt to also get rid of it. Half naked and back in each other's arms kissing wildly, Nasir bit Agron's earlobe and whispered hotly his most inner desires:  
  
"God, I want you. I've been wanting you since the moment I first saw you. I'm so sorry I've been so scared to do anything about it and when I saw you this afternoon, I thought was too late. But I'm so glad I'm not. I wanted to be in your arms for so long Agron, you have no idea how much I did, you have no idea how much I've wanted you to just take me and kiss me."   
  
"I think I do have an idea." Agron whispered back, kissing Nasir softly on the side of his head. He too began to say his own desires he had hidden for so long right beside Nasir's ear: "You're so beautiful, if you only knew how many days and nights I've dreamed of us being like this, with you in my arms, the rest of the world be damned. Being friends with you has been awesome, don't get me wrong, but to see you like this, to have you like this, nothing in this world can ever beat that." he leaned his forehead against Nasir and looked at him desperately. "I want to be with you Nasir, would you please be with me?" Agron asked the other man before kissing him on the mouth.   
  
Nasir smiled before wrapping his arms tightly around the other man's neck. Too overcome with desire, he could only nod his head quickly before bringing Agron's lips to his once again as the other man placed his hands on his hips and lifted his legs up to wrap them around Agron's hips and making their way to the taller man's bedroom. Kissing everywhere their mouths could reach, they stumbled on Agron's bed in a heap of limbs, laughing at the resemblance this situation had with their first encounter, but only this time no spell was going to broken because they were alone and nothing was going damage the bond they had now created between the two of them.  
  
Soon, both of their pants had come off as well as their underpants and so now there were wrapped up in each other's arms completely bare, admiring and touching one another's bodies, kissing one another here and there, when Agron, felt around until his hand reached the knob of his drawer and he pulled out some condoms and some lube. Nasir, seeing what Agron had in his hand, smiled and kissed him quickly before taking the lube and preparing himself and the other man. Agron then ripped the little package and placed the condom upon himself and, taking Nasir into his arms once again and kissing his neck reverently, he slid into the other man. Nasir gasped at the intrusion, but soon relaxed and wrapped his legs tighter around Agron's waist, inviting him to move, which he did, setting a hard but slow pace while never stopping kissing Nasir. As Agron hit a special spot inside the other man, Nasir's mouth left his and the other man buried his head into Agron's neck and he held on for dear life, his moans increasing as Agron's thrusts sped up. Leaning his head back to look into Nasir's eyes, Agron smiled as the other man leaned in and kissed him on the lips. Without words but knowing what Nasir wanted by the look on his face, Agron reached down and with a tug or two on Nasir's manhood plus doubling his own efforts for completion, the pair came at the same time and leant back on the bed once again, both tired from their activities and the emotions that had ran through them all throughout the day.  
  
"Agron?" Nasir asked after a while, his head laying on the taller man's chest and his fingers running up and down Agron's side.  
  
"Hmm?" Agron replied sleepily, opening one eye and tightening his arms around Nasir, bringing the other man closer to him.  
  
"I know it's not the usual steps that normal people go through, but do you think that after tonight maybe, you'd like to... you know, go on a date with me, sometimes?" Nasir said shyly.  
  
Agron laughed out loud and Nasir yelped when the other man turned the both of them around and now he was the one laying on his back with Agron on top of him with a feral look on his face.  
  
Agron tucked a strand of loose hair around Nasir's ear and before leaning in to kiss him into round number two, he whispered with a smile: "I would love to."  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up, their first date. :)


	4. First date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their first official date (or The One where Nasir screws up) :)

"...so I met this guy named Rhaskos the other night at the bar. He was very nice and even paid for my drinks and my girlfriends'. And we're going to see each other again on Friday and I just can't wait and... Nasir! Are you even listening to me?!" Chadara said, looking at Nasir's goofy smile and eyes seemingly lost into another world.  
  
Nasir shook his head, coming back to reality and looking at his friend guiltily. They were in the school cafeteria, having just finished lunch. "Oh, um sorry, Chadara. Yes, I was listening to you. Very interesting, um...what you were talking about." he said, trying to hide the fact that he hadn't heard a thing she had just said, his head elsewhere.  
  
"And what exactly was I talking about?" Chadara inquired, curious.  
  
"Uh...well...you were talking about how um...the weather is...uh, nice outside?" Nasir offered as an answer.  
  
"You weren't listening to me at all, were you?" Chadara accused Nasir.  
  
Nasir looked sheepishly at his friend. "No, 'mam." he replied, bowing his head down like he was being scolded by his mother.  
  
"Thinking about Agron again, weren't you?" a corner of Chadara's lips lifted as she said this.  
  
Nasir put his hand under his chin and smiled once again. "Yeah, I was, sorry." he sighed.  
  
"You've really fallen for him, haven't you?" Chadara asked her friend, happy to see him so stricken.  
  
"Yeah, I really have." Nasir replied, his smile widening. "He's so nice and so funny and did I mention hot? Because he is, he's just so gorgeous! And the things he can do in bed! I didn't know he was so flexible, I mean he can grab his foot and put it behind his head while I..."  
  
"Woah! Okay! Don't need to get so graphic! You like him, he's great, that's all I need to know, don't need to get into so much details." Chadara interrupted Nasir's sentence with a laugh. "So, have you guys gone on any dates yet?" She couldn't help but ask. While bedroom details might be a little too intimate for her liking, romance she could handle.  
  
Nasir's smile faltered a bit. He sighed once again: "No, we haven't. We just haven't had time yet. I mean, midterms just ended a couple of days ago and all we've been doing since we've started going out is studying, studying and studying..."  
  
"And screwing and fucking and having sex." Chadara said with a wink and a smile.  
  
Nasir let out a small laugh. "Well, yeah and that too." he said, looking down at the cafeteria table with a grin. He added: "I don't know, I guess we're just waiting for when we have enough time between our classes and everything else to-"  
  
"To do what?" came a voice behind them. Nasir smiled and turned around, recognizing that happy tone anywhere. He stood up and approached his boyfriend.  
  
"Well, me and Chadara we discussing that you and I haven't had time to go out on a proper date yet because of midterms and everything else." Nasir said, giving Agron a quick kiss hello and taking the other man's hands in his.  
  
Agron smiled back at Nasir. "Well, it looks like you guys had the same subject in mind than me, because I made my way over here to talk to you about whether or not you wanted our first official date to be tonight. We could get pizza, watch a movie and spend the rest of the night cuddling... and you look like you don't like that idea by the look you're giving me right now." Agron added, seeing a bit of disappointment appearing on Nasir's face at his suggestion.  
  
"Not, it's not that. I just thought that since it's our first official date, we could do something a little bit more romantic, you know? Like a nice candlelight dinner, with a nice bottle of the most expensive wine I could find and then after that we could um...proceed right to the dessert?" Nasir suggested with a smirk, wrapping his arms around his boyfriend's neck and leaning closer.  
  
Agron wrapped his arms tightly around Nasir and gave him a soft peck on the lips. "Hmm, dessert? Candlelight? I like the sound of that. We can always do something more casual on other dates. I'll certainly go for romance if given the choice for our first one, that's for sure." Agron said with a wide smile, agreeing with Nasir's suggestion.  
  
Nasir stepped back and clapped his hands excitedly. "Okay, great! So, since I was the one who first asked you on a date after the first time we...you know..." Nasir said with a wink, looking at Chadara who was blocking her ears and sticking out her tongue in mock annoyance. He then turned back to look at Agron and added: "I was wondering if I could be the one preparing everything and you could be my date and we could pretend our room is my house and I would try to romance you with my charms and everything and I know you're great at cooking since, duh we're in culinary school together, but I can make killer Italian dishes and I really want /everything to be absolutely perfect and uh..." Nasir yammered on nervously but then when was cut off by Agron's sweet kiss on his lips to which he responded to eagerly.  
  
As they broke apart, Agron reassured the other man: "I'm sure whatever you'll do will be perfect. After all, I'm the clumsy-head in this relationship and you're the perfectionist. Anything I'd try to do would probably end up ruined." he said with a wink. He continued: "I'm sure everything will be a-okay."  
  
*******  
  
"Oh god! Nothing's a-okay!"  
  
It was now nightfall, about three hours before their first official date and Agron was panicking: he was in his room, with his brother Duro on the phone and he was going through every bit of clothing that he owned. It was official: he had absolutely nothing to wear.  
  
"Relax man, I'm sure you'll find something to wear for tonight." Duro responded from his apartment not far from Agron's dorm, putting together a wooden shelf he had just bought, balancing his cell phone against his shoulder with his head.  
  
Agron dumped a pair of what seemed like the 250th pair of cargo pants he owned on his bed with a look of disgust. He sat back on said bed, disheartened: "No, you don't understand Duro. I have *nothing* to wear. Everything's either too sportish or too casual, man I got nothing classy. Nothing that's-"  
  
"-that's good enough for Nasir?" Duro completed his sentence with a smile even though his brother couldn't see it through the phone.  
  
Agron sighed: "He seemed so nervous about our date tonight and I reassured him that everything would be perfect, but how can it be perfect if I'm not dressed properly? It's way too late to go clothes shopping. Maybe I should just call him and take a rain check for tonight." He leaned his head down; he had really been looking forward to this date, to be romanced by Nasir, but now for what seemed like the millionth time since he'd met the other man, he was feeling inadequate to be with him because he didn't have anything to wear to make him look at least a hundredth as good-looking as Nasir was. His boyfriend didn't need help to look gorgeous though, even with muddy clothes he would still probably look absolutely dashing, Agron thought with a smile. Not like himself though, he thought bitterly, who needed all the help in the world to make himself look at least acceptable, but in no way in any kind of clothes that he owned would he look presentable enough for this special occasion.  
  
Duro tried to reassure his brother: "Dude, calm down. Everything's going to be fine, trust me!" Agron heard his brother walk throughout his home and open what seemed to be a door. Duro continued: "I'm looking at my stuff here and uh, what do you dress in suits sizes again?"  
  
Agron didn't understand why his brother would ask him that but he answered him anyway: "Uh, about a 44, why?"  
  
Duro grinned: "Meet me at my place in one hour, I think I might have something for you..."  
  
*******  
  
"So, the noodles and the sausages are cooking, Check. The garlic bread is in the oven, Check. The tiramisu is in the fridge, Check. And I think it's time for the "Poggio di Sotto" to be aired out!" He said to himself, taking the expensive bottle of red wine out of the fridge and placing it on the kitchen counter. Nasir looked around the little kitchen of his and Agron's dorm room and felt proud of himself: he really had set the place up for quite the romantic evening. The meal he was making was worth for a 5-star restaurant, he looked quite dashing in his black suit jacket and buttoned-up grey shirt and he had set up the dining table with a silken white cloth and two small white candles.  
  
He had just put two empty wine glasses on the table and had adjusted the cloth for what seemed the hundredth time in the last hour so it would look just right, when he heard a knock on the front door. Smiling widely, he took to remote control for the stereo that was in the adjacent living room and pushed play. Roberta Flack's "The first time I ever saw your face" started to softly play, completing the romantic atmosphere Nasir had set up and he nervously went to open the door.  
  
When he saw who was behind it, his jaw almost hit the floor right then. Just when he had thought he had seen Agron at his sexiest, he clearly had not seen nothing yet: the white suit jacket and black silken tie Agron was wearing made him look like someone who had just got out of a Hollywood premiere. The way his hair was gelled instead of spiked and the way his eyes sparkled just like his smile made him look like someone right out of the Bond movies, but even more suave. Nasir was simply flabbergasted at the beauty before him, just like Agron seemed to be by Nasir by the look he was giving him at the moment. Both looked at each other for a moment, looking like gasping fishes with their eyes wide and their mouths hanging open.  
  
Agron shook his head to come back to reality. He took out the arm that was hiding behind his back and presented Nasir with a single white rose. "Um...this is for you." he said shyly.  
  
Nasir took the presnt from Agron's hand and looked at it in wonderment. "Agron, it's so beautiful! Thank you." Nasir responded softly, smelling the delicate flower. You didn't have to do that, I was the one who was going to romance you, remember?" he said, looking at his boyfriend with a smile.  
  
Agron smiled back at him and looked down at his feet, a little embarrassed. He stepped through the door and as Nasir closed it and walked past him to put the flower in a vase nearby, he turned around and faced him. "I know, I know. I just wanted to see the smile on your face when I gave you that." he responded, looking at him sheepishly.  
  
Nasir felt his heart flutter by the gesture and by Agron himself and approached the taller man. "Agron, thank you. I love it and I...I..." he was overcome with an emotion he didn't think he had ever felt before. He put his palm upon his boyfriend's cheek, making Agron close his eyes for a moment and lean into the touch.  
  
The other man then grabbed Nasir's hand, kissed its knuckles tenderly and looked deep into his eyes, he too overcome with a feeling he hadn't felt before. He still held Nasir's hand between his own and whispered tenderly. "Nasir? I..."  
  
Nasir smiled at him, the romance of the moment overtaking him.  
  
"Yes?"  
  
"I..." Agron couldn't speak, the world around him disappearing and his eyes only focused on Nasir, feeling lost in the magic of the moment too.  
  
"What?" Nasir whispered, still looking at him with bright eyes.  
  
"I...I think our stove's on fire."  
  
"...What?!"  
  
 _BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_

  
  
 ************

  
  
"Is there anything salvageable in there?" Agron asked from the kitchen table.  
  
Nasir was looking over the stove, going through his failed dish with a fork. He looked at Agron and said sadly: "No, doesn't look like it. The pasta is over-cooked, the sausages are burned to the core and..." Nasir opened the oven and fanned the air with a mitten and coughed as the black smoke came pouring out. He took a peak inside: "...and I don't really wanna talk about the state of the bread right now." he dejectedly finished, sliding his back against the oven, putting his head in his hands.  
  
Agron came over to Nasir and sat next to him. He put his hand on his boyfriend's knee and whispered encouragingly: "Nasir, it's okay. If you only knew how many times I've messed up dishes because I had my mind elsewhere. It's not really the end of the world, you know?"  
  
Nasir looked up at his boyfriend and frowned even deeper than before: "Well, it is to me! I wanted tonight to be perfect for you. You only deserve the best and usually I'm able to give the absolute best to people, but tonight it just..." he sighed, looking sadly at his boyfriend. "It just blew up in my face." he finished depressively. He put his hand over Agron's and linked their fingers together. "I'm really sorry I ruined our first official date." he said with a sad face.  
  
Agron squeezed their fingers together tightly, gave Nasir a small smile and kissed him gently on the side of the head. "Well, it's not entirely ruined. The night is till young, maybe we can still do something that can count as a date, even if it's not the most romantic thing in the world." he said with a reassuring smile.  
  
"Oh yeah, and what would that be?" Nasir inquired.  
  
"Well..."

  
  
 ************

  
  
"You know what, you were right. It might not be the most romantic date ever known to man, but this still very nice, if I do say so myself."  
  
"Told you sometimes I could have some good ideas."  
  
The dinner had been put in the trash, the wine had been set aside for another day, the candles had been blown off and Agron and Nasir had both changed into something more casual. They had decided that Agron's first choice as a date would be just right after the disastrous way the night had started and the couple were now cuddling together under a soft blanket, holding the tiramisu between the two of them and going to town on it with a shared fork while watching a movie. And they were right: while it might not have been the most romantic set-up for a date that they could have chosen, for the both of them it changed what was at first a horrible night into a great one.  And as they fell asleep on the couch wrapped tightly in each other's arms, it couldn't have ended more perfectly.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next one is their first big fight and another first that's a bit of a surprise. Stay tuned. ;)


	5. First big fight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Their first big fight (or the one where Agron (and a bit of Nasir) screws up) and another first that's a surprise! :)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So for this one, it'd be better to read "Sinuessa in Pistrina" to better understand what is going on, since there is going to be a bit of time-jumping between one part and another towards the end of this chapter. For anyone that hasn't read my other story, here's what happened:
> 
> Nasir and Agron are now owning a bakery together, called "Sinuessa", but work-related stress and lack of quality time together has put a strain into their relationship. One night, a mistake Agron made on one of Nasir's recipe somehow made them reconnect with one another and after some yummy sex, they became closer than ever before.
> 
> So that's the gist of it. Hope you enjoy this chapter! :D
> 
> Rated M for some nice make-up sex, or should I say love-making! ;)

"So this will be your final assignment for this semester."  Mr. Oenomaus, the teacher of the "Baking 101" class and one of Roma Culinary School's greatest mind, said as he passed instruction down the aisle to each students, including Agron and Nasir. "This will be worth 25% of you grade for this class, so pay attention to what's written on here." he added, pointing to the piece of paper in his own hands. "Your task is simple: you must invent your own recipe for a pastry, which is essential for any common man or woman who wants to actually succeeds in this industry. Now, any common chef can copy what's written in any good cookbook and still do well, but the great minds of cooking must be able to accomplish a recipe from scratch without help whatsoever and use his or her creative mind to come up with something original, delicious and that stand out of the lot. You can use whatever ingredients you desire but your dish must absolutely include one out of these four ingredients: vanilla, honey, caramel fondant and maple syrup. You can either do this assignment individually or be in teams or two. You'll have a week to create your recipe, write it down on a piece of paper and in our last class you will give me a sample of it that you will have made during the week. So, good luck and get creative." the teacher said, closing his text book and signaling that the class was over.  
  
As they were walking away from their classroom, both Agron and Nasir agreed that it would be best to team up together to do their assignment. Since they were a couple, it would be easier to work together than separately since they knew each other so well and they were sure they could come up with something more creative and better together than alone. After a bit of discussion, they decided to use the caramel fondant as the selected obligatory ingredient and started to craft ideas for their recipe.  
  
But there was a slight problem in their plans: you see, while Agron and Nasir worked together very well on the creative side of things, on the technical side, well...  
  
 ************  
  
 _Ring! Ring! Ring!_  
  
"What?"  
  
"Agron? Where are you? The class is free, we can do our recipe right now!" Nasir said to his boyfriend over the phone, sounding a bit agitated.  
  
"I'm at the basketball court right now, playing a game with Crixus and Duro. Nasir, for the hundredth time, we got all day to do our assignment. We already have our recipe written down, I'm sure Mr.Oenomaus will love our stuff even if we whip out something quick tonight rather than waste an entire day on it." Agron reassured the other man.  
  
"But Agron! We just can't get do something that quickly! We gotta work on it until we get it just right!" whined the other man, trying to convince his boyfriend to come and help him.  
  
"I'm sure we'll be fine even if we don't spend hours and hours working on it." said Agron, starting to get a little bit tired of Nasir's insistence.  
  
"Please sweetie, you gotta come and help me, I promise I'll make it your while..." whispered Nasir seductively, knowing promises of sex was one of Agron's weak point.  
  
Agron felt his knees flinch and got tempted by the offer. "Really? Make it my while?" he asked, suddenly intrigued.  
  
"Well, I could..." the next part was only for Agron's ears to hear and the taller man felt himself grow hot and bothered by Nasir's nasty suggestion.  
  
He sat on the park bench, his knees no longer able to support him. He stammered: "Well, that sounds really...really nice."  
  
"Well," Nasir smiled, feeling victorious, "if you want all that and more, then you gotta come to school and help me with our assignment. Please?" he added, using the sexiest voice that he could muster.  
  
Agron hesitated for a second, then felt all of his resolve leave his body. "Alright, alright. I gotta tell the guys first that I'm leaving and then I'm on my way. Give me a half-an-hour and I'll be there." he finished, feeling a bit ashamed to have given in so fast.  
  
  
 ***************  
  
"Nasir, really, how much time are you going to spend on that measuring cup?"  
  
"Agron, shhh, please! I'm trying to concentrate!"  
  
And that's how the couple ended up in an empty classroom one late Friday afternoon, working on their assignment. Or rather, Nasir was the one doing all of the work while Agron was sitting in a chair, checking his watch every now and then, bored out of his mind.  
  
"Nasir? Why did you ask me to come here if you're the one that's actually doing all the work? I'm good at cooking too, you know? I'll be glad to help." Agron said from his seat.  
  
"Well, you have already helped me with the creation, so now you can encourage me with the execution." Nasir responded, trying to get his measurement just right. The smaller man then put the caramel fondant into the mixing bowl and picked up a knife.  
  
Agron was starting to get a bit impatient. He stood up from his chair and went over to the other man, who was now slicing butter into perfect tiny little squares.  
  
"And why can't I work on the execution too? It is my dish too, you know." Agron said in a huff.  
  
"Well, if it's me that actually does it, there'll be less of a chance that it'll be messed up than if you do it." Nasir responded matter-of-factly, putting the sliced squares of butter into the mixing bowl.  
  
Agron looked at Nasr, a bit offended. He put his hands on his hips and said: "Just because I can be a bit clumsy sometimes when I do stuff doesn't automatically mean I can't work. I'm just a more off-the-cuff guy than you. At least I don't waste my time getting things sliced perfectly even though in the end it won't matter, they all end up mixed-up in a bowl anyway and nobody will even see them! So who cares how they look?" he added, crossing his arms.  
  
Nasir put down the measuring cup down he had once again picked back on the class counter and turned around, facing his boyfriend. He crossed his arms too and said: "Well, if your clumsiness doesn't matter so much, why don't you prove it to me? Go ahead, get to work!"  
  
Agron walked over to the counter and as he mumbled to himself: _Work, work, I'll show you how I work._ , he picked up the measuring cup, poured some milk in it without paying attention at how much he put in there and threw it in the mixing bowl. He put the cup back and pointed at the bowl. "There! See, I can execute stuff! What do you think?" he said sarcastically.  
  
Nasir rolled his eyes at Agron's attitude and went over to the mixing bowl. He looked at the content inside and the measurements they both had come up that were written down on a piece of paper. He turned around and looked at Agron with narrowed eyes. "And you just put in twice as milk we had agreed to and you just turned our recipe into complete mush. I hope you're happy." Nasir responded as sarcastically as Agron had earlier, even as going as far as clapping his hands slowly to show his "appreciation" for Agron's work.  
  
Agron frowned at the other man, half of him feeling guilty for screwing up their recipe and the other half not wanting to give the victory to Nasir so easily and get his pride hurt. He sighed: "Look, we can just redo the recipe, it's not really that complicated."  
  
"Oh no! No, no, no! It's taken me over two hours to try to get things right the first time, I'm not going to spend another two hours doing this all over again, at least not with you around!" Nasir responded, crossing his arms over his chest once again.  
  
Agron started to get more upset. "And what's that supposed to mean?" he asked, tapping his foot.  
  
Nasir huffed: "It means that since we already have the recipe written down and you're not really useful around here anyways, I don't need you anymore, especially since you're probably going to mess things up even further if you try to help me,  just like you did just now."  
  
Agron looked very offended now. "Oh please, like I'm the only one that has a history of messing things up, Mr. I-almost-blew-up-our-kitchen-on-our-first-date." he said, narrowing his eyes at Nasir.  
  
Nasir then became very angry. "Hey! You know how sorry I am that this happened! No need to throw it back in my face!" he exclaimed.  
  
Agron then started to shout, also getting very angry now: "Well, if you didn't throw *my* own clumsiness in *my* face all the time, then maybe I wouldn't need to remind you of that!"  
  
"Well maybe if you were more careful sometimes and had your head on straight every once in a while, then maybe you wouldn't make so many mistakes so many times!" Nasir shouted back at him.  
  
"Well, maybe if you didn't spend all your time obsessing over everything and let yourself get loose every once in a while, then maybe you'd get your head out your ass and you'd see that not getting everything right all the freakin' time in not the end of the freakin' world!" Agron retorted.  
  
"Well since we're disagreeing on how to work together, then maybe it's better we do this entire assignment separately after all!" Nasir replied back.  
  
"Yeah, maybe it's for the best. Like you said, we have already written it down, I don't need you to actually make it. You'd just be a burden." Agron snorted.  
   
"And like you're not a burden! At least with you gone, I won't have a partner that criticizes everything I do all the time" Nasir replied, now going almost out of his mind.  
  
"And at least if I'm alone I won't have someone over my shoulder all the time nagging me over every single freakin' details!" Agron yelled back, picking up his backpack with his own copy of the recipe and beginning to walk to the class door.  
  
"Well, fine!" Nasir shouted, picking the measuring cup back in his hand, getting ready to get back to work on his own.  
  
"Fine!" Agron said back, going through the door and slamming it behind him.  
  
The second he heard the loud banging sound of the slamming door behind him, Nasir's anger dissolved right away and he was left with a overwhelming feeling of sadness and shame. How could he say all those things to Agron? He had known who Agron was when he had first met the guy, he knew his flaws and they had never really bothered him that much before. Was he really that obnoxious about them?  These flaws were what made Agron, well Agron. He didn't want to be with someone like himself, someone who always wanted things to be perfect all the time, he wanted to be with someone different than him: someone that made him laugh and made him forget about his own insecurities. Someone like Agron. Nasir threw the measuring cup in the mixing bowl and went to the class door in a hurry, opening it to see if Agron was still in the hallway and then maybe he could try to fix things with his boyfriend (was Agron still his boyfriend?) but when he was that nobody was in the hallway, he closed the door once again and leaned against it, feeling a couple of tears escaping his eyes, regretting the way things had turned out.  
  
 *************  
  
A couple of miles from there, sitting on a couch holding a bottle of beer in his hands with his head down, a miserable Agron sighed from what seemed the dozenth time since the last hour and wiped at his leaking eyes. He had walked as fast as he could out of the school, not trying to make his anger obvious to the passerbys, and he had headed to the closest destination he knew where he'd be away from everything that had happened and away from Nasir: his brother Duro's apartment. But the moment he had walked through his brother's door and closed it, he let his mind work for just a moment and in that moment all of his anger towards what had happened between him and his boyfriend (was Nasir even his boyfriend anymore?) that afternoon faded away and he was only left with a deep feeling of sorrow and disbelief over what he had done. And when he heard footsteps approaching and felt the strong arms of his brother encircle his shaking form, the usually strong and happy-go-lucky Agron couldn't hold back anything anymore and cried out all of his misery on Duro's shoulder. And so, after calming down a bit and taking an offered alcoholic beverage from his sibling, he was now curled up on the leather piece of furniture, wallowing in self-pity.  
  
How could he had said all those things to Nasir? Usually the other man's nagging about how he was didn't really bother him but today it just had reached a breaking point for him and the escalating argument had only made things worse. But the thing was, as Agron thought more and more about it, a part of him needed Nasir around to remind him to be more attentive to what was around him and keep a more leveled head about things. Ever since he had first met the other man, he had taken his studies much more seriously than before (thanks to the study-dates he and Nasir had started to do together on a regular basis) and it had showed in his climbing grades throughout the semester. So they were different, big deal! It what made the world great that people weren't alike, in his opinion. But, as he sighed once again and curled up even further into his seat, what was said had been said and what was done had been done and Agron feared that the damage caused by his and Nasir's fight in the classroom was simply too heavy to be repaired.  
  
Duro took a seat next to his brother and squeezed his knee with a sympathetic smile. "Look, man, give Nasir some time to cool off and go talk to him again. I'm sure you guys will work it out somehow." he said, trying to reassure Agron.  
  
Agron raised his head to look at his brother. "But how can we work this out after what happened!? You weren't there! You didn't see the look on his face when we fought. I've never seen him so hurt and so angry. How can I look at him again after what I've said to him?" he wallowed in complete misery, leaning his head against Duro's shoulder.  
  
Duro patted Agron's shoulder and said: "Well, I'm sure there must be something you can do to get back on his good side..."  
  
Suddenly, as if lightning had stroke Agron, he raised his head from Duro's shoulder and stood up in a flash. "Of course, I gotta get back on his good side!" he said, a smile once again reappearing on his face. "I've just gotta make him see that I still care for him even with what happened this afternoon and make up for my mistakes." he exclaimed, but then his smile faltered a bit. He started to pace back and fourth and think. "But how? How *do* I make up for what I said and what I did this afternoon?" he asked himself out loud, his hand under his chin while walking from left to right, trying to think of a good idea.  
  
"Well, since the fight you guys had seems to have been pretty big, the gesture you gotta do to make up for it has to be pretty big too." Duro suggested.  
  
Agron suddenly stopped walking and turned his head towards his brother, his smile slowly reappearing. He exclaimed: "I think I got it! But I think I'm going to need your help. Here's what we're going to do..."  
  
**********  
  
While Agron was setting his plan in motion with Duro's help, Nasir was himself wallowing in complete misery just like Agron had done before, but he was doing it back at his and Agron's dorm room. He too was curled up on a couch, with a blanket on top of his knees, but since he had no one to cry out his anguish to, he had rented the most romantic movie he knew and was scowling and talking to the characters on the TV as if they were really in front of him. It might have sounded crazy to some people, but it was very cathartic to Nasir: how dare the people on the screen be all happy and mushy with one another when he just had a fight with his boyfriend, who he didn't know if he was his actual boyfriend anymore, and feeling really shitty about everything that had happened?  
  
"Hey Noah! Seriously dude, don't waste your time on Allie! You know she's just going to break your heart and stomp all over it!  Better cut your ties while you can, she's not worth the pain!" he yelled at the TV. "Nothing's worth the pain." he added more softly, feeling a fresh batch of tears coming. He wiped at his eyes one more time and whispered to himself: "Nothing but Agron." If only he could think of a way to make things better with the other man. But as much as he thought about it throughout the night, he couldn't think of a single thing to make up for the severity for what he had said and did to Agron. So he had just given up like a coward, and was now sitting there on that couch, watching " _The Notebook_ " and wallowing in self-pity. He laid his head on the back on the couch, closing his eyes, trying to let the sound of the movie drown out his sad thoughts when suddenly, he heard what sounded like the sound of a guitar playing. He opened his eyes and looked at the TV. He had seen " _The Notebook_ " at least 10 times by now and he didn't remember hearing guitar playing in the scene he was watching. Intrigued about where the noise was coming from, Nasir pushed the "OFF" button on the remote control and was even more shocked when he realized that the music wasn't coming from the TV at all, it was coming somewhere from outside. Getting up, he started to slowly walk to his window, where the music seemed to be getting louder and louder as he was approaching, and he opened it.  
  
What he saw simply shocked him to his core: there, on the lawn underneath his window, was standing a dishelved-looking Agron with a guitar in his hands, playing as best as he could. He strummed the cords, playing a slow melody while looking at Nasir with his heart in his eyes, seemingly nervous about what he was doing. He seemed to hesitate to start singing something, like he was being careful about what words he would use. And then softly, Agron started to sing and Nasir instantly recognized the song, tears coming to his eyes as he realized what Agron was singing and the meaning behind the words:  
  
 _"Oh, my love, my darling, I've hungered for your touch,_  
 _A long, lonely time._  
 _And time goes by, so slowly and time can do so much,_  
 _Are you still mine?"_  
  
Agron paused for a bit, still playing his guitar and looking up at Nasir, as if he wanted an answer to the question in the song. And just as Nasir, overwhelmed with emotion was about to open his mouth to speak, a adjacent light suddenly went on and a window that was neighbor to the couple's dorm room opened. A shaved head popped up from window, with a scowling look upon its face.  
  
"Agron! Dude, it's midnight! Some of us are trying to sleep! Now is not the time to play "Romeo and Juliette" around here!" the angry face's owner, named Varro, said while looking at Agron and waving his arms, pointing at the whole neighborhood. Agron stopped strumming his guitar and looked around. It was true, right now may not have been a good time to serenade outside of a window, but the severity of his situation needed drastic measures and he felt that this was what needed to be done to rectify things between him and Nasir.  
  
He looked at Varro and yelled back: "Look, I'm sorry I'm doing this so late, but I got no choice man. I'm trying to make up with my boyfriend here and you're interrupting me! And you've probably just ruined everything!" He then looked back at Nasir once again with tears coming into his eyes. "As he?" he asked pleadingly at Nasir.  
  
Nasir didn't speak for a moment, to overwhelmed with emotion. Agron took his silence as a rejection of his method of reconciliation and hanged his head in defeat, chastising himself for thinking that this was going to work. But then, he heard the cracking voice of Nasir from up above and he looked up, seeing Nasir leaning his hands against the window pane and singing his answer rather than speak it, with tears spilling down his cheeks just like Agron's.  
  
 _"I need your love,_  
 _I need your love._  
 _God speed your love to me."_  
  
Agron smiled tearfully at Nasir who smiled back as widely as he was. Varro looked at the two and rolled his eyes. "God, will you guys stop making googly eyes at each other and go make up already? Some of us have to go to work in the morning!" he said, reaching out to close his window once again.  
  
His eyes never leaving Nasir's, Agron yelled out distractingly: "Sorry Varro! Goodnight!" and climbed the veranda that was standing just below their dorm's window. Now, it might not have been a safe thing for Agron to do and it might have been better just to get to the main door of the dorms and go through the stairs up to his room, but right now he just didn't care. He needed to get to Nasir as soon as possible and this was the fastest way that he had thought of.  
  
Just as he grabbed the window pane, he found himself face to face with a smiling Nasir. He propped up his arms and raised himself up a bit to get to the other man's eye-level and they each stood there, looking at one another in silence, their eyes communicating all their feelings and all their apologies they couldn't say to one another. Finally, Nasir raised both of his hands and cupped Agron's head between them tenderly. He leaned his head against the other's forehead and closed his eyes. Finally, he opened his eyes once again and wiped the tears from Agron's face and asked in a whisper:  
  
"You love me?"  
  
Agron smiled and nodded his head, making Nasir smile in return. Agron then pushed his arms up and got his legs up and over the window pane, finally making his way inside. He then took his boyfriend's hands in his own and asked in return:  
  
"You love me too?"  
  
Nasir's smile widened and he too nodded his head. And when Agron's hands left his own, was swept into a pair of strong arms and heard muffled sobs into his shoulder, he couldn't take it anymore and broke down himself, sobbing into Agron's own shoulder and the both of them stayed like this for a while, in each other's arms, crying in relief to have been forgiven for what had happened and the realization that they had taken a step further into their relationship, having declared their love for one another.  
  
Soon, they were kissing each other's tears away and that soon turned into soft kisses on the lips and wondering hands. Tongues then got involved and the kisses turned into a passionate makeout session. Agron then surprised Nasir by picking him up bridal style and taking him over to the couch where the other had sat upon earlier. Never leaving his eyes, Agron tenderly laid his boyfriend over the cushions and without a word, took his sweatshirt off. Nasir smiled, understanding the other man's intentions, then he unbuttoned his own shirt and dropped it on the floor, next to Agron's. The pair then went back to each other's arms and kissed and touched tenderly, taking their time to enjoy one another's company. Something was different in their actions that night. Usually, whenever they were in bed, the couple's actions would be filled with passion and hurriedness, trying to get to the point of completion as fast as possible. But this time, after having declared their love for one another, it seemed like their touches and kisses were less hurried and more filled with feeling than before. And instead of burying their heads in each other's neck and not looking at each other's faces while in the act, this time they couldn't take their eyes off one another and kept caressing each other's faces tenderly, like they considered themselves lucky that the other was there. And when they both reached their climaxes, fingers linked tightly together, even though they may not have been as high as when they happened on other times before that, they were still much more satisfying than before because of the newly discovered emotions between the two of them.  
  
As they cuddled together on the couch afterwards, Nasir couldn't help to ask: "Agron? What are we going to do about the assignment? With everything that happened today, I just couldn't get into cooking. So I got nothing done today. And I don't want to do it by myself." he said, looking at his boyfriend with sad eyes.  
  
Agron smiled and kissed Nasir on the forehead. He then said: "I don't want to do it alone either and I think I got a solution to our problem." Agron stood up, still without clothes, and went to the fridge. He opened the door and took what looked like a Tupperware bowl out of it and brought it over to the couch.  
  
Nasir looked at the bowl, curious. "What is that?" he asked, intrigued.  
  
Agron smiled at Nasir and reached out to open the lid. "Well, I felt so bad about what happened this afternoon that, with what we had written down for our recipe and with the help of my brother, I was able to redo our cake and I put it here while you weren't around. Take a look!" he said, looking proud of himself and opening the bowl.  
  
Nasir gasped as he looked at its content. The cake! It was there! And with how it looked, it seemed that Agron had followed the recipe's instructions to the tee and didn't pour things here and there without measuring anything like he always did.  
  
"Oh my god! You remade the recipe! I can't believe it!" Nasir exclaimed, kissing Agron all over his face while the other man was laughing.  Nasir ended his trail of kisses on Agron's sweet lips and as he pulled back, he kept his arms around the other man's neck and said, his smile shining: "Thank you so much. My Agron, my love."  
  
Putting the bowl on the coffee table and wrapping his own arms around the other man, he smiled back at him and said: "You're welcome. My love, my Nasir."  
  
And as they kissed sweetly on their couch in the middle of their dorm room, Agron asked Nasir: "Well, what do you think Mr. Oenomaus will think of our little creation?"  
  
********  
  
"This is awesome!"  
  
This wasn't Mr. Oenomaus saying this, but Spartacus, Sinuessa's accountant, after trying out Agron and Nasir's new cinnamon chocolate cake they had made together the night before. Like all those years ago, a creation of them had brought them closer than ever before and while the first time an assignment had made them discover their love for one another, a mistake this time around made them rediscover that love all over again.  
  
And of course Mr. Oenomaus had loved their caramel fondant creation. They had passed their course with flying colors and the couple never fought that hard again because of their personalities or their work ethics. Sure, over the years they had argued about things from time to time, but it was never as bad as that first time. It was time, stress and neglect of their relationship that had brought a strain in their love the second time around, not a fight. And just like that first time, it was when they discovered how well they fit better together (the first time in their personality, the second time in how they work) than apart that their bond became tighter than ever before.  
  
Agron had his strong arms wrapped around Nasir from behind while they were talking to Spartacus and Nasir couldn't stop caressing the hands wrapped around his waist, as if he trying to reassure himself that the night before had been real, just like the way Agron was holding him so tightly against him, like he didn't ever want to ever let him go again.  
  
Spartacus smiled at the bakers and asked: "How did you guys came up with this one?"  
  
Nasir turned his head towards Agron who was smirking at him and the smaller man gave him a long sweet kiss on the lips. He turned his head back towards Spartacus and with a smirk of his own, he simply said:  
  
"With love."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next time, we will jump a few years into the future and the bakery will start to take form! :)


	6. First bakery

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sinuessa's time to shine has come! :)

It was during their first semester at Roma that Agron and Nasir had first talked about a mutual future beyond culinary school. It had started in a casual way, during one of their usual Friday night in their dorm room. They were cuddling on their couch watching TV, with Nasir's head in Agron's lap while the latter was gently stroking his fingers through his boyfriend soft long hair, like he always loved to do. They had been sharing a comfortable silence while watching the entertainment news show of the day when Nasir had felt Agron's strong fingers standing still in his dark mane. That must have meant that Agron was lost in his thoughts.  
  
Nasir turned his head from the TV and looked at his boyfriend. "Agron, are you okay?" he asked with a concerned look on his face.  
  
Agron smiled at the smaller man, leaned down to give him a soft kiss on the forehead and replied: "I'm fine, don't worry. I was just thinking."  
  
Nasir sat up and leaned his head against the back of the couch, all the while smiling back at the other man. "And pray tell, what were you thinking about?" he asked jokingly.  
  
Agron grabbed Nasir's hand in his own and kissed its knuckles. He stared at the other man and said: "Well, you know, lots of stuff: school, Duro, you." Nasir smiled even further at those words. Agron then took a breath and added, with a more serious look upon his face: "And the future."  
  
Nasir was a bit shocked at how serious their conversation had quickly turned out to be. Swallowing a lump that had appeared in his throat he asked: "And what about the future?"  
  
Agron looked at his boyfriend "Well, what I'll do after I finish school, where I'll live, all that stuff." he replied.  
  
Nasir then dared to ask, nervous about Agron's answer: "And does your future include me in it?"  
  
Agron's smile returned on his face, squeezing Nasir's hand tightly and with hope in his eyes, he replied: "Well, that depends. Do you want to be in my future?"  
  
Nasir's smile also returned and he whispered: "Of course I want to be in your future, if there's a place for me in it of course."  
  
Agron kissed once again his boyfriend on his forehead and replied: "Of course there's a place for you in it." he then turned more serious once again and asked in return: "And does your own future include me beyond all of this?"  
  
Nasir couldn't help but smile at Agron and squeeze their linked fingers even tighter. "Of course there's a place for you in my future beyond this." he replied, gesturing around their dorm room. He then asked also: "Do *you* want to be in *my* future?"  
  
Agron then let out a laugh and as he leaned in, about to begin one of their usual passionate make out session, he whispered: "What do you think?"  
  
And so they left it at that for the moment, reassured that the other wanted them in a future beyond a shared dorm room.  
  
 **************  
  
The next time the subject was brought up, it was a couple of weeks later, at the beginning of their second semester together. The couple were in the cafeteria eating lunch with Chadara and her boyfriend Rhaskos. Chadara was checking out a school brochure where all the classes from every year were described and she said out loud: "Hey, what do you guys think you're going to specialize in? It says right here that after this semester, we're going to have to choose courses in specialized branches. I'm thinking going into "Catering and Hotel Industries", looks interesting. What about you, Rhaskos?"  
  
Her boyfriend looked at the brochure on the cafeteria table and replied: "Hmm, maybe "Butchering". I like working with different kinds of meat and all that. What about you guys?" He tossed the paper over to Agron and Nasir.  
  
The couple took a glance at the brochure and without knowing what the other would say, each of them replied at the same time: ""Baking"."  
  
Rhaskos looked at them for a moment, shocked that they answered the exact same thing at the exact same time. "Freaky." he couldn't help but comment, receiving a hit in the ribs from his girlfriend's elbow.  
  
Chadara looked at the couple and asked: "And what do you guys think you will be doing in the baking industry?"  
  
Agron was the first to respond: "Well, I don't really know about Nasir, but I kinda always had a dream of opening my own bakery. I love creating cakes and other kinds of pastries for other people and if I can make some bucks out of it, then it'd be all for the better." He looked at Nasir and was shocked to see him with his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open. "What's wrong?" he asked his boyfriend, looking concerned.  
  
Nasir closed his mouth and replied: "Um, you're not going to believe this, and I know we've never really talked about this before but, it's always been kind of my dream too."  
  
Agron was the one with his eyes wide and his mouth hanging like a fish now, not believing that the two of them had been having the same life goals but had never really talked about it before this moment. Sure, they had said that they could see a future beyond culinary school together, but wanting to do the exact same thing with their life? If it wasn't fate that somehow had put the two of them together, then he didn't know what it was.  
  
"You guys have known each other for six months and have been dating for four of them and you've never talked about what kind of professions you both wanted to do?" Chadara asked, incredulous at how doofus her two friends were.  
  
Nasir glanced over at Chadara and replied: "Well, we've just never had the time to approach the subject or the place to talk about it."  
  
Agron then added: "Yeah and when we're together, we're just too busy..."  
  
"...having your tongues in each other's mouths to talk about stuff like that?" Rhaskos ended the sentence for him, receiving another hit in the ribs for his efforts.  
  
Agron glared at Rhaskos and couldn't help but blush. He replied: "No, we have talked about stuff like that, just not in details."  
  
"We have talked about having a future together beyond school, I just didn't know it could be potentially as business partners." Nasir added, turning his head towards his boyfriend.  
  
A smile appeared on Agron's lips. "Are you serious?!" he dared to ask.  
  
Nasir looked at him, shocked at himself a little bit to have had the guts to say that to Agron. "Well, it looks like we've got the same kind of plans in our cards, so maybe it'd be best for us if we work together if we want to make it happen." he replied. "What do you say?" he added nervously.  
  
Agron couldn't help himself and stood up from the table, taking Nasir with him and hugging him tightly. He spun the other man around, the both of them laughing like a bunch of idiots and when he set the smaller man down and kissed him softly, he whispered, chuckling: "Of course I will."  
  
 **************  
  
And from that point on, Agron and Nasir often talked about their future prject. They would talk about what kind of pastries they would make, what kind of atmosphere the bakery would have, they even thought of the name of their first bakery and who they would like to hire there. As time went on and the months went by, the project became more and more serious. And when both Agron and Nasir graduated together with flying colors from Roma Culinary School about a year later, they set their plans into action.  
  
First of all: The name.

  
"How about _Bakery dreams_?" Nasir had asked one morning during their last semester at Roma.  
  
"Heh, too lame. How about _Agron and Nasir's bakery_?" Agron suggested.  
  
"Does it really have to have our names on it? I veto. Ooh, how about _Sins of the Bakery_?" Nasir suggested in turn.  
  
Agron thought for a second: "Does it really have to have the word "Bakery" in it?"  
  
Nasir glared at him and replied: "Well, people have to know what kind of store we are. Do you have a name in mind that *doesn't* have "bakery" in it?"  
  
"Well, while I'd take out "bakery", your "sins" theme is actually pretty good. Maybe we could play with that. ...how about _Sinuessa_?" Agron said after thinking about it for a moment.  
  
Nasir tried the name on his tongue. " _Sinuessa, Sinuessa_...sounds sweet and inviting, just like we want our pastries to be. I like it!" he said with a broad smile.  
  
And so the name was decided.  
  
Second of all: Who would they hire?  
  
"Who do we know that'd actually like to work for us?"  
  
Nasir thought for a moment. "...Chadara?"  
  
Agron agreed on the spot: "Chadara." He then suggested in turn: "How about Crixus?"  
  
"I don't know if he'd actually like to work under us. Maybe we should ask him."  
  
They ended up asking him.  
  
His response: "If I get to suggest some of my ideas for what we can make, then I'm in."  
  
Nasir and Agron looked at each other, then looked back at Crixus and both nodded. He was in.  
  
Third of all: The location.  
  
For that, they would need money to pay a lease.  
  
Fourth of all: monetary issues.  
  
Oops.

 ~~Fourth of all:~~ First of all: monetary issues.  
  
If they were going to have a location to place a name on it and hire the personnel they needed, they were first going to need some money.  
  
Since they didn't really know how to deal with anything fiscal, with the help of the Internet and Crixus's recommendation, they found themselves an accountant in the name of Spartacus, who lived nearby the apartment they had moved into together a couple of weeks after graduating.  
  
Just like Crixus had said, Spartacus was a very approachable person and wasn't as stuffy and serious-looking as other accountants on the market seemed to be. He made numbers talk very easily for both Agron and Nasir to understand and he could explain clearly what were the couple's monetary situation and what exactly would they need to make their business work.  
  
The good news: when they put what they had saved throughout the years together, the couple had the minimum amount required to get enough equipment and hire enough people (at minimum wage, of course) to get their business off the ground.  
  
The bad news: he didn't know any locations around town that had a lease cheap enough for Agron and Nasir to afford at the moment.  
  
The couple had gone out of Spartacus' office and sat on the edge of the sidewalk, the both of them feeling helpless over everything.  
  
"What are we going to do, Agron? If we can't find a location that we can afford, we won't be able to do anything." said Nasir dejectedly.  
  
Agron looked at his boyfriend with a frown, hung down his head for a moment, then raised it back up. "I'll tell you what we're going to do Nasir, we're not going to give up. I believe there's a spot in this town that has our name on it and we're going to search and search and search until we find it." Agron said with renewed resolution, getting back on his feet and helping his boyfriend back up to his.  
  
Agron's enthusiasm rubbed a bit off Nasir and he too began to once again feel hope for their dream. As they began to walk back to their home, Nasir's smile returned and he said: "Yeah, there's a place that belongs to us somewhere and we just can't give up now. And even if we have to postpone our project for a bit to search for it, I'm sure we'll end up finding what we're looking for, I just know we will." he added, leaning against Agron's shoulder, smiling hopefully as they walked hand-in-hand down the street.  
  
Agron smiled back at his boyfriend and replied: "I know we will too."  
  
And a couple of months down the road, they ended up finding something.  
  
 **************  
  
Agron was supposed to come pick up Nasir from his part-time waiter job he had taken shortly after graduation to make hands meet while they were waiting for their project to get off the ground that night and he was surprised to be greeted by an overly excited boyfriend who happily laughed the moment he saw the other man and gave him a more passionate kiss he usually did.  
  
"What's going on?" Nasir asked, still a bit breathless from the kiss.  
  
Agron looked at his boyfriend excitedly and said with a wide smile: "Well, Duro came to see at the coffee shop during my lunch break and he showed me this." Agron took out a cut-out piece of newspaper that had a classified ad on it encircled in black ink. "It's a restaurant that closed a couple of months ago. The ad's been in the newspaper for a while, I just never really noticed it until now. The restaurant was there for a couple of years and there were renovations that needed to be made but were never done because the owner apparently didn't want to spend the money on it. So that's why it closed. I called Spartacus about it, who called the realtor of the place to know its price and Nasir, it's right in our price range! We just have to redo the place a bit, renovations and everything, and it'll be ours! What do you think?" Agron added, looking excited like a eight-year old child.  
  
Nasir took a look at the ad on the paper and raised his head to look back at Agron, a smile coming in the corners of his mouth. "I think it looks perfect." he simply said, giving a loving kiss on Agron's lips. When he pulled back, still with his arms around his boyfriend, he asked: "Can we go visit the place?"  
  
"Sure! That's why I was coming to pick you up from work, to go see it!" Agron replied clapping his hands excitedly.  
  
"Then let's go!" Nasir exclaimed, taking Agron's arm who lead the both of them to their potential future business place.  
  
And when they saw the place in person, they both agreed at Nasir's previous statement: it was perfect.  
  
And so the next few months were spent redoing the place from the ground up: painting, buying come new furniture, a lot of cleaning and getting rid of cobwebs and the sorts and finally some decorating. Thankfully they had Agron's brother to help them, since the guy was now a handyman and pretty much could do and repair anything they wished: cabinet working, plumbing, wiring, welding, etc.  
  
And so, four years after they had first stumbled into one another in a school hallway and after it took two years to get their dream off the ground, from planning to doing the last necessary repairs on their location, Agron and Nasir proudly hanged their newly white-painted sign where _Sinuessa_ was written in long black letters, on the front of their door and got inside to welcome their very first costumer. Who was it, you wanted to ask?  
  
None other than their also proud-looking accountant, Spartacus.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, this will be my last chapter for this prequel of my story, since what I have planned next (a sort of epilogue) happens after my other story, "Sinuessa en Pistrina". So this is it for now and I'll see you guys for the next 2-3 chapters sequel I have planned next. :)
> 
> Wanted also to say, thanks a lot you guys for the comments and all the kudos, really means a lot to me. See you in a bit! :)


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